Garment hanger



July 13, 1943. w. D. LHAMON 2,324,093

GARMENT HANGER Filed Oct. 18 1940 //v VENTOR.

Wm. TE]? 0. LHA MON BY WZZXMM ATTORNEY Patented July 13, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GARMENT HANGER Walter D. Lhamon, Cleveland, Ohio Application October 18, 1940, Serial No. 361,694

8 Claims.

This invention relates to garment hangers and particularly to those devices used to retain mens trousers in a neat and folded condition.

As conducive to a clearer understanding of this invention, it may be well to point out that the simple wire hangers of the prior art, when used for holding mens trousers during storage or transit, very often left a sharp crease where the garment folded over the horizontal rail of the wire hanger. Also, in many instances, if the hanger happened to be made of a galvanized metal, oxidation took place and left a white mark on the garment fabric where it contacted the metal.

Persons handling garments in large numbers, such as employees of cleaning and pressing establishments, found that trousers had a tendency to slip off of the hanger while being carried thereon. This was particularly true where a number of garments were hung on a truck for delivery. The vibration of the vehicle caused the garments, and especially the trousers, to slip on the wire frame with the result that when they reached their destination they were often wrinkled and in a disheveled condition.

It is therefore the primary object of this invention to provide a garment hanger of the type suitable for holding mens trousers in a neat and unwrinkled condition.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simple device which will prevent the garment for which it is intended from slipping or moving on the hanger.

A further object is to construct a hanger guard of a single piece of stock material and which is economical to manufacture and use.

Still another object is to provide a guard of the type mentioned which prevents the fabric of the garment from contacting the metal of the hanger and which is so constructed that the pressed creases of the garment are not destroyed.

Still a further object is to make a novel trousers guard which is also suitable for use on a conventional wire coat hanger and which is adaptable for commercial advertising purposes.

These and other objects and features of the invention will become apparent from a study of the following description and claims together with the accompanying drawing in which like parts are designated by like reference characters and wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the guard mounted on a conventional hanger and showing how a garment is held thereby;

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional View of the device taken along the lines 2-2 of the Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the device taken along the lines 33 of the Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view of the device taken along the lines 4t of the Figure 1.; and

Figure 5 is a plan view of the guard open and unfolded.

Referring to the Figure 1 of the drawing, there is shown a conventional wire coat hanger 10, which has a hook ll thereon and a horizontal rail member 52. Coat hangers of this type are quite common and are manufactured in standard sizes. In the Figure 1, the character 63 designates a portion of a pair of mens trousers showing how they fit in the guard 20 and on the hanger It.

The guard 29 is preferably made of one piece of stock material. This material may be cardboard which is fairly stiff and which has some resiliency. The shape of the guard is substantially rectangular when open and is clearly shown in the Figure 5. It is scored along the lines 25 and 26 so that it may be easily folded therealong. The openings 38 and BI are cut out so that when properly folded, the guard 29 will take the shape shown in the Figure 1.

The mid-section sides of the guard 20, when it is folded along the lines 26, form two depending portions referred to herein as longitudinal panels 2| which hang over the rail member 12. The bifurcated end portions 23 also hang over the sides of the rail i2, but extend outward of the ends thereof so as to engage the hanger H] in a manner which prevents excessive sliding or lateral movement. The somewhat U-shaped side portions '24, which are folded laterally on the scored lines 25 over the panels 2!, are also folded longitudinally along the scored lines 2% and when in use lie over the panels 21. The guard 28 is cut so that the corners 21 extend a little below the central horizontal edges of the panels 2| when the end portions 24 are folded thereon. These corners 21, depending below the side portions, have a tendency to engage the fabric of the garment and help prevent undesired movement or slippage of the garment.

When used, the guard fully opened is placed under the trousers with the line 26 at the point where it is intended that the trousers are to be folded. The side portions 24 are then folded over the trousers. The rail l2 of the garment hanger I0 is then placed under the scored lines 26, and the openings 29 of the end portions 23 made to engage the hanger frame I 0. The guard is then folded downward along the lines 26.

Two or more pairs of trousers, together with similar guards, may be placed on the same hanger, and also a coat or vest may be hung on the hanger H] in the conventional manner without interference by the guard 20.

The space on the panels 2| or the side portions 24 may be very easily used for advertising purposes or for the printing thereon of simple instructions on how the guard is to be folded and used.

Among the many advantages that this type of hanger guard has over the prior art device is the feature that causes the side portion points 21 to be closed or pressed inward and tightened over the outer surface of the garment when the depending central panel portions 2| are pressed inward by the weight of the garment and when the fold line portions 26 are raised higher than normal above the fold line portion 22. When these two portions, 26 and 22 respectively, are separated by the bulk of the garment therebetween, the corner portions 21 tend to close more tightly against the panel portions 2 I. This tendency to close tightly is caused by the askewing or distorting of the normally rectangular folds of the guard and thereby causes the garment E3 to be actually tightly gripped between the panels 2| and the side portions 24 so that ordinary handling will not disturb the original position of the garment. Secondly, the openings 32, which are formed by the cuts 3! when the side portions 24 are folded inward over the panels 2!, allow ample room for the garment to hang freely without crushing, particularly at the points where the pressed creases of trousers for example, curve around the rail l2.

It will now be clear that there is provided by this invention a garment hanger which accomplishes the objects of the invention. While the invention has been disclosed in its preferred form it is to be understood that the embodiment of the invention as described and illustrated herein is not to be considered in a limited sense as there are many other forms or modifications of the invention which are also considered to be within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A garment hanger, comprising in combination, a supporting frame including a hook portion and having a rail member, and a guard member having a longitudinally folded central portion engageable with the rail member forming depending panels on each side thereof, longitudinally folded and laterally folded side portions facing the depending panels and extending below the same, and bifurcated end portions extending outwardly of the central portion engaging the said frame and positioning the ide portions on the said rail.

2. In a hanger of the class described, a garment guard, comprising a single piece of sheet material having a central panel foldable longitudinally over a bar of the said hanger and being suspendible therefrom, substantially U shaped side portions foldable over the central panel, and bifurcated end portions engageable with the said hanger bar, the said end portions being extendable outwardly of the said central panel and side portions when the said sheet of material is in the folded condition.

3. In a hanger of the class described, a garment guard, comprising, a piece of sheet material foldable longitudinally over the said hanger and capable of being suspended therefrom, substantially U shaped side portions integral with the piece of material and foldable laterally thereover, and end portions integral with the piece of material and foldable longitudinally over the said hanger and capable of being engaged therewith.

4. An article of the type described in claim 3 and further characterized by the side portions being foldable vertically and horizontally over the piece of sheet material and having edges inclined relative to the horizontal fold when in the folded condition.

5. In a garment hanger, a guard consisting of a piece of stiff sheet material having a panel portion and at least one side portion attached thereto, the said panel portion being folded horizontally at a first fold line over the said hanger, the said side portion being folded vertically at a second fold line and horizontally at a third fold line over the said folded panel portion, the said side and panel portions being in relatively loose contact when material adjacent to the said first and third fold lines are in close relation and in relatively tight contact when the material adjacent to the immediately aforesaid fold lines are in more distant relation.

6. In a garment hanger, a guard of the type defined in claim 5 and further characterized by the said side portions being substantially U shaped.

7. In a garment hanger, a guard consisting of a piece of stiff sheet material having a panel portion and at least one side portion attached thereto, the said panel portion being folded horizontally at a first fold line over the said hanger, the said side portion being folded vertically at a second fold line and horizontally at a third fold line over the said folded panel portion, the said side and panel portions being open when the said fold lines are in normal position and being closed when the said fold lines are in a distorted position.

8. In a garment hanger, a guard of the type defined in claim 7 and further characterized by the said side portion being substantially U shaped.

WALTER D. LHAMON. 

